cheers 1 year anniversary

BY DANIELLE WILLIAMS /CHIEF DESIGN OFFICER

We wanted to take a moment to do two things today: express our thankfulness and reflect.

Why? Because, friends, today is the 1 year anniversary of cheers studios. So thank you to every person who has supported us along our journey and has chosen to make cheers a part of theirs. To friends, family, clients (who have become new friends and family) and everyone in between: thank you.

When we first started out a year ago Blake and I started brainstorming names to represent our studio. After a while, we realized we kept coming back to the word "cheers" because to both of us it symbolized a way of expressing thankfulness and excitement. In the early use of the word, "cheers" was something you shared with your closest and most trusted companions.

We set out to create a business that created connections and trust among ourselves, our partners, and our clients. To share genuine cheers.

Now for the reflection on how we got here.

In case you didn't know: Blake and I are siblings. (You can learn more about Blake here and me here) Growing up in a very small town on the western edge of Ohio, we both strived to do something big. For Blake that meant becoming an engineer and learning at one of the most recognizable technology companies in America. For me, it meant traveling the world and learning to become the best designer I could be. Ultimately, these ambitions came from the fact that our parents never said: "you can't do that."

After Blake and I went out and "made it big" by reaching our childhood goals, we decided to try something new. To create something together that was our own: cheers. Our mom is one of the most go-get-em individuals out there. As children, she opened her own antique store in our small town (population 236) because she was passionate and wanted to share it with others. The composition book you see in the image above was her ledger. It is filled with handwritten notes of every piece she sold, its description, and price. She worked by hand and taught us that there is no failure when you try. Thank you for that! It gave us the courage to always keep pushing to reach our dreams.